FTA OKs TriMet preliminary engineering for Orange Line

Portland, Ore.’s TriMet will proceed with preliminary engineering for its sixth light rail line, this one to Milwaukie, Ore., with approval from the Federal Transit Administration.

FTA’s approval allows TriMet to proceed with the 7.3-mile Orange Line extending from Portland State University to Milwaukie. TriMet says the extension’s construction will generate 12,300 jobs; the line is set to open in 2015.

TriMet’s MAX Green Line, linking Clackamas Town Center with the Portland Transit Mall and Union Station, is set to open this May.Portland’s first light rail line went into service in 1986, linking the city with eastern suburb Gresham; the city was the second in the U.S., following San Diego, to initiate “new start” LRT.